Culture eats strategy for breakfast, or so we've been told by Mr. Drucker and others. Coincidentally, I wholeheartedly agree. So, how does leadership maintain, let alone improve, its company culture in the face of the first pandemic of its size in the last one hundred-plus years?Of course, it will not be a one-size-fits-all approach, but the following are three suggestions I have seen work recently for several of our clients."I always feel like somebody's watching me" – Rockwell 1984Admit it, this song is now stuck in your head (you're welcome!). It seems that employees are paying closer attention to company management than ever before. How you communicate, your style of communication, transparency, consistency, accessibility and responsiveness (even if only remotely) – it all matters. What matters most in my humble opinion, however, is that you deliver all information in a timely and authentic way. Being prompt in sharing good or bad news will be especially appreciated now. And if ...

The Wilmington Business Journal recently asked corporate and securities attorney Ken Bart and Director of Consulting for Ward and Smith Business Consulting, Hank Harris, how businesses can strategize for a post-pandemic environment. Their comments appeared in the latest "Insightful Discussion."COVID-19 has brought stressors on businesses that were unheard of just a year ago. What should business owners be thinking about strategically at this moment in time?Hank Harris: I think the one thing that all business owners need to consider is how their business will transition to the next leader or generation of leadership. In the big picture, all businesses have only two fates – they are either sold or they are liquidated. An internal transition is just a form of sale. It may be to family, or employees, and discounted; but it is still a transaction. Three things are different today. First, privately-held business models are less homogenous than they used to be. Widely held ownership in a p...